Tall Tale: The Unbelievable Adventure

"A journey into a world where legends come to life. Dreams come true. And every boy is a hero."

1995 1h 38m EN

😐

6.2

MID

🥫

48%

ROTTEN

⭐

5.9

IMDB

★6.2TMDB · 91🥫48%Rotten Tomatoes★5.9IMDB · 4,394

AdventureFamilyWestern

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A young boy draws on the inspiration of legendary western characters to find the strength to fight an evil land baron in the old west who wants to steal his family's farm and destroy their idyllic community. When Daniel Hackett sees his father Jonas gravely wounded by the villainous Stiles, his first urge is for his family to flee the danger, and give up their life on a farm which Daniel has come to despise anyway. Going alone to a lake to try to decide what to do, he falls asleep on a boat and wakes to find himself in the wild west, in the company of such "tall tale" legends as Pecos Bill, Paul Bunyan, John Henry and Calamity Jane. Together, they battle the same villains Daniel is facing in his "real" world, ending with a heroic confrontation in which the boy stands up to Stiles and his henchmen, and rallies his neighbors to fight back against land grabbers who want to destroy their town.

“A journey into a world where legends come to life. Dreams come true. And every boy is a hero.”

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Cast

Patrick Swayze
Pecos Bill
Oliver Platt
Paul Bunyan
Roger Aaron Brown
John Henry
Nick Stahl
Daniel Hackett
Scott Glenn
J.P. Stiles
Stephen Lang
Jonas Hackett
Jared Harris
Head Thug Pug
Catherine O'Hara
Calamity Jane

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Jeremiah S. Chechik
Writers: Steve Bloom, Robert Rodat
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

31 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Jeremiah S. Chechik, shot by Janusz Kamiński. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Randy Edelman. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Richard Chew shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Patrick Swayze and Oliver Platt and Roger Aaron Brown carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "A journey into a world where legends come to life. Dreams come true. And every boy is a hero.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0111359 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

Only 91 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Jeremiah S. Chechik directs. Janusz Kamiński behind the camera. Randy Edelman scores. Richard Chew cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

131 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
2Directed by Jeremiah S. Chechik, shot by Janusz Kamiński. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
3Original score by Randy Edelman. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
4Editor Richard Chew shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Patrick Swayze and Oliver Platt and Roger Aaron Brown carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "A journey into a world where legends come to life. Dreams come true. And every boy is a hero.".
7IMDB entry: tt0111359 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Only 91 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Janusz Kamiński
Original score: Randy Edelman
Editing: Richard Chew
Production design: Eugenio Zanetti
Costume design: Wayne A. Finkelman
Stunt coordinator: Ernie F. Orsatti
Runtime: 98 min · 1h 38m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $32,000,000
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG
IMDB: Tall Tale: The Unbelievable Adventure (1995)
Rotten Tomatoes: 48% 🥫 Rotten
IMDB rating: 5.9/10 · 4,394 votes
MPAA: PG
US box office: $8,247,627

Also by

Jeremiah S. Chechik

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Community reviews

What people are saying

r96sk2020-10-04
★ 7/10
A tad messy in its execution, but a cool film nevertheless. I'll be honest, it oddly took me a while to catch on to what was happening; I found all the dots, so to speak, but didn't connect them quick enough for some reason. Nonetheless, throughout, I was very much enjoying the film. The cast are terrific, they certainly elevate the film up in my thoughts. Patrick Swayze, Oliver Platt and Roger Aaron Brown are entertaining in the respective roles as Pecos Bill, Paul Bunyan and John Henry. A young Nick Stahl isn't amazing, but his performance is satisfactory. Scott Glenn, meanwhile, is a solid villain. Away from them, you have the likes of Jared Harris, Stephen Lang, Scott Wilson and Catherine O'Hara appear - I would've loved to have seen more of O'Hara as Calamity Jane, there was great potential there for a big team up with Swayze's character; sadly we only get them together for a short time. The premise is a strange one but one I liked. It could've came out better no doubt, though it is still done to a suitable level. <em>'Tall Tale'</em> is a fun flick from Disney.

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